Brush commutated electric motors generally include an armature having a plurality of coils wound in slots formed in the lamination stack of the armature. With traditional motor designs, the lamination stack of the armature forms a plurality of circumferentially arranged slots extending between adjacent pairs of lamination posts. Two coils per slot are typically used when winding the armature coils on the lamination stack. Among the two coils of the same slot, the one which commutates first is referred to as the first coil and the one which commutates second as the second coil. The second coil has inherently poorer magnetic commutation than the first coil because the second coil passes beyond the magnetic neutral zone within the stator before it finishes commutation. This is illustrated in simplified fashion in FIG. 1, wherein the commutation zone of the first coil is designated by Z1 and the commutation zone of the second coil is designated by Z2. A rotor R is shown positioned within the stator S having field coils F. As a result, the second coil commutation can generate significant brush arcing, and becomes the dominant source of the total brush arcing of the motor. This can also cause electro-magnetic interference (EMI) to be generated which exceeds acceptable levels set by various government regulatory agencies. This brush arcing can also lead to accelerated brush wear.
To address these concerns, distributed winding arrangements have been developed that reduce brush arcing and improve commutation efficiency of an electric motor. It remains desirable, however, to reduce the size and cost of electric motors while maintaining the improved commutation performance achieved by the distributed winding arrangements. This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.